Fencing

Pantel and Yarnell Both 5-9 After First Day at NCAAs

Mar 15, 2008

March 15, 2008

Columbus, OH -
On the first day of men's competition at the 2008 NCAA Fencing Championships at Ohio State, Brown sophomores Adam Pantel (Mendham, NJ) and Adam Yarnell (Harrison, NY) both posted 5-9 records, putting themselves in 17th and 20th place, respectively entering the final day of competition on Sunday. Combined with sophomore Randy Alevi's (Old Westbury, NY) 10 wins in womens' saber, the Bears' team total of 20 victories puts them in a tie for 19th with Brandeis.

Both Bears came up with wins over opponents currently in the top six in their weapon. Pantel defeated Dorian Cohen of Duke, who is in sixth in men's foil at 9-5, by a 5-3 score. In the ep&eacute;e, Yarnell defeated fifth-place Peter French of Air Force, 4-3, and seventh-place Tommi Hurme of Princeton, 5-4.

In the team competition, Ohio State and Notre Dame continue to battle for first place, with the host Buckeyes taking a 149-147 lead entering the final day. Columbia hangs onto third with 128 points, but Penn State and St. John's are catching up with 123 and 118 points, respectively. The Bears' 10 points were 16th for just male results, with Penn State tallying a high of 55 points on the day.

The competition wraps up on Sunday with the final nine bouts for each fencer. The Bears have already surpassed their total of 14 points from last season, which was then good for 19th place but would only be good for 23rd after Saturday. Last time Brown had three fencers at NCAAs, in 2002, the team placed 16th.